A retelling of Seven Samurais and The Magnificent Seven with magical girls who were child soldiers in a war. The entire story is told in second POV with about 7 different POVS, suffice to say it was a really really hard read. The story itself was hard to get into and follow with the writing style and the second pov made it hard to follow along and remember who's POV was it. If i had known this was a second POV with this many povs, I would not have requested this book at all. The initial premise of the book sounded exactly like a book I would have loved but it was written in a way that completely turned me off from the book. I wanted so badly to like this book but the way it was written made it nearly impossible to find the distinction between one character and the next. The choppy dialogue, the POV being in 2nd person, and overall fashion of the book was just not working together. I think the best way to get into this book would be in audio book with various different voices, otherwise you just get lost in the story.

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, HarperCollins for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A amazing coming of age story about how mothers and daughters pass down and rebel against standards of size, gender, race, beauty and worth. The story follows 3 times: 1954, 1972, and 2000 and follows three women. In Guandong 1954, sixteen year old Mei Laan longs for a future of freedom and hoping to use her beauty to get an arranged marriage... maybe she'll find happiness in Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, 1972 sixteen year old Lydia wants nothing other than to pursue dance and to gain her mother's approval.... which has been hard since her mother is extremely critical and mostly absent... especially sharp about Lydia's weight. In Toronto, 2000 sixteen year old Roz is grappling with who she wants to be and how she wants to look. Roz thinks that if she were thinner, everything would be better. When Roz's grandmother, Mei comes to town abruptly.... the three generations of women are all under one roof and all three of these women have a strained relationship with each other. Can they find a way to finally mend the rift between them? This was such a touching and beautiful coming of age story that really resonated with me. The generational trauma and the body image issues that we can pass down to each other was so well depicted. This story really touched my heart and it was so well written. I would absolutely recommend this book!

*Thanks Netgalley and Annick Press Ltd., Annick Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

In a city filled with the disciples and descendants of saints, there are power plays, rebels, and a serial killer on the loose, and two childhood sweethearts turned enemies with a complicated history must find a way to work together if they want to save the city and everyone in it. In the city of Ombrazia, there are seven saints. These saints have disciples and descendants who worship and are blessed with talents related to their saint. Those who are not gifted with abilities are known as the “unfavored” and seen as disposable and made to be sent off to war. Rossana Lacertosa is a disciple of Patience but she absolutely loathes being one and hates the system entirely, especially after her father was murdered at the hands of the Ombrazian military for trying to leave, and on top of that the man who murdered her father just happens to be the father of the boy she loved who broke her heart and never talked to her after her father’s death. Rossana is angry, she joined the rebellion, and she is going to do whatever it takes to get revenge for her father and take down the system. Damian Venturi is the youngest captain in the history of Palazzo security, he is expected to be a ruthless, strong and completely devoted to serving the saints without question... except Damian is haunted not only by his time at the war front but by his sins. Damian is left with the scars of spending three years in a never ending war, filling him with despair, anxiety, and crushing guilt. He can never forgive himself for what he did to Rossana but he knows he still loves her. He is a coward, he’s afraid of facing her and of facing his father, but he is someone who will do what’s right and that means he is going to solve the recent murders and do whatever it takes to bring the murderer to justice... even if it means working with Rossana again after all these years. Damian is torn between guilt for what he did to her and the love he still feels for her, he knows he doesn’t deserve her and he is haunted by all the dark things hes done to survive his time at war. Rossana is forced to face the boy who broke her heart and the pain that come from being near him. With a serial killer on the loose and the body count rising both of them must find a way to confront their past in order to work together and find the killer, but can they survive all their anger and guilt? This was definitely a fun read, I love a murder mystery and the complicated enemies to lovers filled with so much angst between Rossana and Damien was absolutely amazing. This is the first book int he series and the way this ends has me so excited for the next one. I can’t wait to see how Rossana and Damien are in the next book and what it means for their relationship as well as how the mystery will grow!

*SPOILER* The saint of Chaos was banished and scrubbed from history after the horrible power plays done by them, they can manipulate minds and let people see things. Enzo ( Damien’s friend) turned out to be the disciple of Chaos who as killing people and taking their eyes to sacrifice. Damien had notified his father that Rossana’s father deserted because he was worried something had happened to him and it was a huge accident on his part.Damien was racked with guilt and couldn’t face Rossana, but Rossana was worried that Damien was killed or injured. They had spoken in three years but never stoped loving or thinking about each other ( well Rossana got very very angry with him). Rossana was part of the rebels. Damien’s father was killed off and Damien deserted the army only to later then be chosen as the new captain to lead after the whole thing. Rosanna is now leading the rebels and they are both together again. Damien shot Enzo after Enzo showed him a vision of a dead Rosanna and they both left his body down in the temple where he had set up the sacrifice.... and Rossana thinks that Enzo made Damien part of his plan and something else is in store for them (she’s right, Enzo made himself the 7th sacrifice and he is now rising as a saint after Damien killed him).

*Thank you Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A very cute conclusion to the thrill fantasy middle grade graphic novel trilogy! Suri is finally going to meet her dragon... or is she? After her adventures and making new friends, her and her friends are on their way to Monster's Cradle. They'll face off against new monsters, vengeful dragons, and finally find the truth behind her dragon and her past. This was such a fun series to read and I loved the artwork for this series so much. It's a really fun one to read and I think that young readers will love this one!

*Thanks Netgalley and First Second Books, First Second for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Pen Pals are supposed to send fun letters to each other right? What if your pen pal only ever sends you hate mail for years... until you both lose contact and now two years later suddenly he sends you a letter with no return address asking you if you can find him... will you try? Naomi and Luca have been pen pals since fifth-grade, they're not normal pen pals, they send each other letters that are filled with mean and slightly disturbing things, always trying to one up the other. They keep at these letters for years, from fifth grade to college, to graduation, to more.... and then suddenly the letters stop. It's been two years since Naomi last heard from Luca. Naomi is a weather girl now and when a mysterious letter comes to her at her station... signed by Luca with no return address asking her if she can find him, she can't resist trying to find him again. Things only get more complicated when the very hot neighbor in her building ask her out and she begins falling for him... yet she's also started writing to Luca again.... and the closer she gets to him the more she's going to figure out he is a lot closer than she could have ever imagined. This was the CUTEST book ever. I absolutely adored the hate mail pen pal relationship between Lua and Naomi, it was so cute and hilarious. As someone who loves writing letters to my own pen pals this was such a cute read and I adored it. The letters between Naomi and Luca were so funny and at the same time the way they both wanted to connect to each other throughout the years and fell for one another was so sweet. This is an absolute must read and I would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a really cute romance read!

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, One More Chapter for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A witch crusading as a socialite plays a deadly game of cat and mouse with a witch hunter... yet when pretending to woo each other they might find themselves falling for one another, but their romance is doomed from the start and where do the lines between truth and lie begin to blue? Rune is a witch who was forced to turn in her own grandmother to the Blood Guard (humans who were part of purging witches). Rune spends her days pretending to be a vapid socialite but at night she is the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues witches from being purged. Rune knows that she has to agree to a suitor... but she wants one that will help her get intel on the Blood Guard and who better than Gideon Sharpe, the notorious witchhunter himself. Gideon hates the decadence and superficiality Rune represents and he wants nothing more than to capture the Crimson Moth, so when he learns that the Crimson Moth has been using Rune's merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he decides that the best way to find out what her connection is and whether or not she is actually the Crimson Moth is to woo her, albeit faking it..... Yet the more time Rune and Gideon pretend to woo each other and seduce each other the more they actually begin to open up to each other and what started off as pretend is beginning to feel like real love. Though things are only more complicated as Alex ( Gideon's brother and Rune's best friend who has been secretly helping her cause) wants Rune to come away with him and marry him... yet she is falling for Gideon, despite Gideon also wanting to hunt her down. When the truth is finally revealed there will be blood shed and pain, but what awaits these two? First of all , this is a fantastic first book in the duology and keeps you completely gripped until the end!!( and oh boy what an ending that was). There is also something I should mention, TRIGGER WARNINGS: including cutting ( witches used blood and cutting to perform magic), sexual assault ( past mention), and death. This book is truly enemies to lovers with so much cat and mouse (definitely think along the lines of Mr. and Mrs. Smith), but so far it's been enemies to fake lovers to real lovers to enemies again. I can't wait to see how everything plays out in the next book, especially with how this first book sets up everything. The drama, the angst, the romance, and I truly TRULY want the romance to work out for these two so badly after everything.

*Spoier: Rune's grandmother tasked her with finding Seraphine, another witch, to help mentor Rune. Rune's body doesn't have any scars so no one has detected that she is a witch. She's been using her period blood as the blood conduit rather than fresh blood. Alex and Verity are her two best friends who have been helping her. When she fails at rescuing Seraphine, she decides to try and seduce Alex's brother Gideon to get the info since he is higher up in the command at the blood guard. Rune begins actually falling for Gideon. Gideon was the ex lover of Cressida, one of the young queen witches, whom Alex said he had killed but he faked it and let her go saying he hoped that Gideon would heal if he thought she was dead ( puh leeeassseee alex im begging you). Gideon started off as her lover but she became crazy, she murdered his sister, she sexually assaulted and tortured him constantly, she drowned his mother and had his father killed. Gideon protected Alex from her. Gideon thought that Rune was the Crimson Moth so he faked wooing her but fell in love with her instead. They fall for each other and do sleep together. Then Gideon discovers Cressida is still alive after he finds the spell signature that was meant to kill Rune was Cressida ( she had branded him with the same signature). When he goes to Rune's to apologize after she overheard him telling Laila ( his comrade ) that he slept with her to check that she was a witch or not ( he meant all his feelings he was trying to protect her from suspicion) he overhears her talking with Alex about being a witch and her plans. Alex convinces Rune to marry him and go away with him out of the country (she was fresh from her heartbreak with Gideon and she said yes). Alex has always been in love with Rune but she always thought of him as a brother. Both Rune and Gideon were crushing on each other when they were younger but completely misunderstood the other and ended up having a bad first interaction. Rune thinks that Gideon is rude while Gideon thinks that Rune is vapid and rich. Yet when they get to know each other they realize how alike and perfect they are for each other. However Gideon overhears and then when the blood guard comes and figures out that Verity was the one doing magic and then they arrest Rune however Alex confesses to being a Witch sympathizer since he doesn't want rune to die alone. In the prison Cressida gets both Rune and Seraphine out as she has a witch army... aka all the witches that Rune had rescued. Cressida practices Arcana (ancient forbidden blood powerful magic that comes from taking blood from unwilling victims and she has been the one leaving dead bodies around the republic and mutilating people). Cressida practiced this magic by forcing Gideon to be tortured by her. When Cressida wants Gideon to come with her and he refuses she tries to shoot him however Alex takes the bullet instead and dies (he tells Rune to use his blood and escape). Rune ends up going with Cressida as she has nowhere else to go and she asks Seraphine to train her (despite how much Rune is disgusted by Cressida). Gideon vows to hunt down Rune.

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

You've For Mail meets Abbot Elementary school in this rom com about two teachers who are unknowingly best friends online who begin falling for each other in real life. Lucy Galindo is a school counselor with a secret, she's also the person behind the wildly popular blog @TheMissGuidedCounselor. Lucy may be shy and constantly trying to manage her anxiety and depression, however online, she is bold and confident. Aldrich Fletcher is the new history teacher that just transferred from a rich private school to get away from his drama filled family life only to find himself trying to dodge his ex-girlfriend who had cheated on him with his brother and is now currently working at a teacher at his new school and wants a second chance... and the fact that he's crushing on his new co-worker, a very cute guidance counselor... who just happens to be his online best friend @TheMissGuidedCounselor. Lucy and Fletcher constantly seem to run into each other at the worst possible time when they are seeing each other in real life but they are also constantly turning to each other online to ask for advice and talk to one another. Can these two take their online friendship and turn it into a real romance or are some things better left online. This was an okay rom com, both Fletcher and Lucy were dealing with a lot on their plates and the romance definitely took a back seat to their own problems. I guess for me, this book just didn't catch me as much as I had wish it did. Initially the premise sounded really cute but the overall story was just lacking the romance and the charm. It's not bad it's just not as memorable as I expected. I didn't really feel the romance between the two and their relationship just didn't exactly click for me. Overall if you like a rom com give it a go, maybe you'll have a better time with it then I did.

*Thanks Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing), Forever for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

In a world where there are people gifted with the ability to turn into animals (or familiars) and are bonded (romantically) to a witch, a familiar girl with a powerful gift wants nothing less than to escape from the Princess of the kingdom's courtship and to find a cure for her grandmother's feral stage. Rose is a bone familiar, she is a powerful one too, having the ability to shift into various animals without needing to really think about it while most people only get one or two, she has so many to pick from. Rose spends her days in the Bone Forest, caring for her feral grandmother and hiding her powers to avoid being conscripted into the Witch King's army. Yet when she ends up saving the Princess Shaw, a witch known as Death's Heir, and the King's daughter... she is given the chance to go to the prestigious school, Witch Hall as payment. This is her only chance to find a cure for her grandmother's affliction yet Rosy finds herself hurled into the political games she can't understand and a bond she doesnt want, begins to grow between her and the one person she never wanted, especially since Princess Shaw's family was the cause of Rosy's grandparents' death and current situation. Rosy has to hide her powers while also finding a way to just get by with passing grades, yet the more she tries not to stand out the more she does. It doesn't help that Princess Shaw, a girl known for not wanting a familiar is now actively courting Rosy and even asking her to pretend a fake courtship ( and trying to win her over despite Rosy thinking it's only a fake one as they agreed). Rosy will face the war brewing head on and have to decide whether or not she is done running away from problems and finally embrace her magic and inner wolf or will she hide away like she always does? This one was a miss for me unfortunately, I really wanted to love this one because sapphic fantasy romance with witches, magic, and some politics is absolutely right up my alley.... but this was just not it. I did not feel the chemistry between Rosy and Shaw at all and half the time I was struggling to even like either of them. The switch from Rosy's 1st POV to Shaw's 3rd person POV was so strange for me. I also didn't really care for the pacing of the story and the overall romance just didn't work for me. There were so many characters and yet I really didn't find myself all that invested in any one of them particularly. I was just tired by the end of this book unfortunately and I dont think I will be continuing on with this series. While it wasn't for me, if you like complicated school drama with a bit of romance and magic give this one a go, I definitely think you'll have a better time with it than I did.

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Feiwel & Friends for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

How far would you go if you were in love with someone... who has killed? At Adraredon Academy two girls will find their paths crossing leading to death, romance, and more. Veaer Rosell is a scholarship student who is bored, she craves beauty and art and finds herself fixated on the headmaster's daughter, Elise. Elise is known as the school's princess, she's a loner, an extremely talented artist, and something about her just draws Vear in. Yet when Veaer witnesses Elise murdering her own best friend, things only begin to get out of control. So begins a violent and illicit love between the two as Veaer seeks to discover why Elise would commit a murder and what her goal is while also dealing with her own obsession with Elise. Will their love end in more death? This book had all the potential to be one of my all time favorite books but completely missed the mark. This book had everything but an actual good plot and characters with personalities or even growth. Reading this book was difficult only because it was so boring and so completely incoherent at times. I honestly couldn't find myself liking any of the characters or being invested in the story. The book dragged on and on and I have applaud myself for even making it to the end, despite this being a short book. The book had a gorgeous cover, had all my favorite things from dark academia to sapphic romance and a murder mystery.... but it just fell flat on all counts. I wanted so badly to like this book but I don't think I can recommend it to anyone. If you like sapphic dark academy stories I would say give it a try, maybe you'll have a better time with it than I did. Now if you do want a good dark academia sapphic book with obsession and a murder mystery I can highly high recommend A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee.

*Thanks Netgalley and ARC provided by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A new urban fantasy series featuring a girl who finds herself with magic she never new she had and dealing with working with her ex best friend who might have created something that could destroy the world. Petra Grady is a Sweeper first class, she is tasked with cleaning up mage's spells and dross, the damaging, magical waste made from mage's spells. Sweepers are considered as second-class but Petra is an extremely talented one. When she is forced to work with Benedict Storm, her childhood friend turned nemesis who broke her heart and destroyed their friendship, she is not excited. Benedict is working on research that could render the Mages' dross inactive and make Sweepers obsolete. Petra knows this is an impossible task and that whatever Benedict is doing is going to end up being dangerous and a failure, yet her team wants her on the project to oversee what is happening and give them insight. Benedict doesn't understand dross the way Petra does and strange things are happening around Petra, from her roommate acting weird to her neighbor being around her more... not to mention the fact that Petra might have to finally get out of her own shadow and reveal her talents... which could shatter the world. This book is the first book in a series and unfortunately I don't think I will be continuing on with this series. The book had an interesting world at first but then I found myself disliking the characters and not at all caring about what happened to them or the world. The magic system was unique and I liked the urban fantasy setting. I however, did not like Petra at all. Petra made terrible decisions that had me frustrated and honestly I couldn't care less about the other characters and what they were doing. It felt like a drag trying to get to the end of the book and I so badly wanted to DNF it many times but kept pushing myself to finish in hopes that maybe it would get better (spoiler: it did not). I feel that if you like slow moving urban fantasy novels with a pretty naive and young protagonist and no romance, give this one a go, maybe you'll have a better time with it than I did.

*Thanks Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group, Ace for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*